Author: TheConversation

By Beth C. Caldwell, Professor of Law, Southwestern Law School The United States deported 238 Venezuelan men on three flights to El Salvador on March 15, claiming that they were members of the Tren de Aragua gang that originated in Venezuela. Immigration officials have said that tattoos were not the sole criteria used when deciding whom to deport; however, a government document showed that officials relied on tattoos and clothing to determine gang membership. A lawyer for Jerce Reyes Barrios, a professional soccer player who is among the Venezuelans deported to El Salvador, says the government detained and deported...

By Dina Khapaeva, Professor of Cultural Studies, Georgia Institute of Technology Beginning in September 2025, Russian middle and high school students will be handed a new textbook titled “My Family.” Published in March 2025, the textbook’s co-author Nina Ostanina, chair of the State Duma Committee for the Protection of the Family, claims that it will teach students “traditional moral values” that will improve “the demographic situation in the country” as part of a “Family Studies” course that was rolled out in the 2024-2025 school year. But some of those lessons for modern living come from a less-than-modern source. Among...

By Linda E. White, Professor of Japanese Studies, Middlebury For centuries, women entering marriage in Japan have been bound by the Confucian notion of personal sacrifice for the good of the family, and that has extended to their names. Encouraged by a sexual double standard and shaped by a general perception of Japan as a society made for men, most women abandon their maiden names when tying the knot. The law doesn’t give them much leeway on the issue. Since 1947, Japanese Civil Code has stipulated that all married couples must share a common surname. Although in theory that...

By Seth T. Kannarr, PhD Candidate in Geography, University of Tennessee; Derek H. Alderman, Chancellor’s Professor of Geography, University of Tennessee; Jordan Brasher, Visiting Assistant Professor of Geography, Macalester College Place names are more than just labels on a map. They influence how people learn about the world around them and perceive their place in it. Names can send messages and suggest what is and is not valued in society. And the way that they are changed over time can signal cultural shifts. The United States is in the midst of a place-renaming moment. From the renaming of the...

By Julia Standefer, Ph.D. Student in Psychology, Iowa State University; and L. Alison Phillips, Professor of Psychology, Iowa State University A state law signed on February 28, 2025, removed gender identity as a protected status from the Iowa Civil Rights Act, leaving transgender people vulnerable to discrimination. The rights of transgender people – those who present gender characteristics that differ from what has historically been expected of someone based on their biological sex traits – are under political attack across the United States. There are now hundreds of anti-trans bills at various points in the legislative process. Reasons given...